Passage by Connie Willis

advertise.

	EUROPE'S MOST VISITED SF/F WEB SITE

Passage by Connie Willis

Pub: Voyager/HarperCollins. 780 page paperback. Price: Ł 6.99(UK). ISBN: 0-00-711826-0

Check out website: www.voyager-books.com

Any Connie Willis book release tends to be an event and this is no exception. ‘Passage’ centres around a hospital research project into near-death experiences.

Passage by Connie Willis Psychologist Dr. Joanna Lander combines her efforts with the more scientific scans of Dr. Richard Wright. They also do their best to avoid Maurice Mandrake, a resident writer - care of the board of directors - who is doing similar research but is really leading patients to his way of thinking rather than getting accurate reports.

There is also a selection of patients like Maisie who is waiting for a heart transplant to Mr. Wojakowski and his contradictory WW2 time stories to former teacher and Alzheimer’s sufferer Mr. Briarley. As to the staff and friends...well, they are equally vivid.

Willis has a remarkable ability to bringing her characters to life in a way that you really do care for them. In many respects, a large part of the novel acts like a detective story with Lander out to discover the meaning of the Titanic appearing when she is put under by drugs for her own near-death experience.

This is no ‘Flatliners’, by the way, they were short of volunteers. Willis even gives reference to that and other experiences from various sources. To give away too much where this plot is going is to spoil surprises.

Saying that in connection with the biggest surprise is that the beats seemed too even rather than bring up the shock factor of the event more. This is definitely a page-turner. I’m equally surprised that publisher Voyager hasn’t tried to market this book in the general fiction arena.

With its modern day setting and events not too far removed from what is currently going on, the general public might not regard this as Science Fiction until they’re hooked.

This is still very much SF and well worth spending some time reading.

GF Willmetts

FREE SF MAGAZINE
Sign up for the Crowsnest SF e-magazine - full of funny reports and gossip. Be the first to find out about hot science fiction happenings & news!

more on the magazine...

CHAT ABOUT THIS STORY

NEWS ARCHIVE